Time and Material managed properly

Per-role rates, validated timesheets, monthly billable amounts computed with one command. Project margin always visible.

T&M is simple in theory, complex in practice

Different rates per role, mix of senior and junior hours, partial milestones, unauthorized extra hours, late timesheets delaying billing. Without a dedicated system, T&M generates errors and eroded margins.

Incomplete timesheets at month end, billing blocked
Different rates per client hard to keep aligned
Real margin known only at quarter close
Manual reconciliation hours-invoices-payments
Budget overruns discovered too late

Native T&M, end-to-end, with AI

hice.ai handles the full T&M cycle: from client contract to billable amounts ready to export. Project margin calculated continuously, automatic alerts on overruns.

"How much did we bill on the BNL project this quarter?"
"Compute November T&M amounts to invoice for Intesa Sanpaolo"
"Notify the PM if we exceed budget on the Generali project"
"Show T&M projects with margin below 25%"

Try it in chat

Examples you can ask:

Static demo of hice's AI chat.

What you get

T&M rate card per client

Rates per role, volume discounts, special conditions per client.

AI-validated timesheet

Coherence check between logged hours and plan, alerts on anomalies.

Automatic billing data

Monthly billable amounts computed from timesheets, ready to export.

Live project margin

Consultant cost vs client revenue in real time.

T&M revenue forecast

Revenue projection based on allocations and rates.

Multi-currency

For cross-border projects with international clients.

A rate card that survives multiple clients, roles and currencies

The rate card is the most underestimated piece. As soon as a firm works with several clients, each with negotiated terms, the same role carries different prices, with annual uplifts, volume discounts and sometimes different currencies. Keeping that in a spreadsheet guarantees an invoice will eventually go out on an old rate.

The fix is to tie the rate to the contract rather than the project, with an effective date and a warning when it lapses. From then on every logged hour is valued at the right rate at the right moment, and price reviews stop being a manual exercise with a risk of being forgotten.

Rates by role, client and validity period
Annual uplifts with a warning before the effective date
Multi-currency with the exchange rate recorded on the transaction
Alert when hours are booked against a lapsed rate

From logged hour to billable amount

The path has five steps and each accumulates its own delay: entry, approval, terms validation, invoice preparation and dispatch. Almost all of those delays are internal, which is why they are the easiest to fix without touching the client relationship.

Approval deserves particular design. If the manager has to review line by line, they will not, and will approve in bulk on the last day. Reviewing only the anomalous — hours outside the assignment, overrun against plan, bookings to closed projects, lapsed rates — turns half an hour of work into three minutes and tightens control rather than loosening it.

Same-day reminder for missing hours
Approval by exception, with the anomalous highlighted
Amount calculated from already-approved hours, no collection
Invoice detail in the format agreed with each client

The four margin leaks in a time-based contract

On a time-and-materials contract the margin is not decided at signature, it is built week by week, and it always leaks in the same places: hours worked and not logged, bookings outside the contract, rates not updated against the agreed uplift, and delivered work nobody invoices because an approval is missing.

There is a fifth, quieter one: variance in the seniority mix. A project sold with two seniors and three juniors but delivered with four seniors bills the same and leaves considerably less. Comparing planned against actual composition every fortnight is one of the most profitable reviews a project owner can run.

Hours pending entry by person and project
Bookings outside the assignment or the contract
Comparison between the seniority mix sold and delivered
Delivered work awaiting invoice, by age

IT service centre, 90 consultants, 30 active T&M projects

The billing manager closed the billing run in 4 days mid-month. With hice.ai: 4 hours. Billing data is ready sooner, payments arrive sooner, cash flow improves.

hice.ai vs classic T&M management

Feature	hice.ai	Excel + generic ERP
Monthly billing-data prep	Hours	Days
Project margin	Real-time	Quarterly
Multi-rate per client	Native	Manual config
Timesheet validation	AI automatic	Manual
Overrun alerts	Automatic	Discovered late
Billing-data export	Ready to use	Manual export

FAQ

What is a Time and Material project?+

A project where the client pays based on hours actually worked at agreed per-role rates. Opposite of fixed price.

Can I mix T&M and fixed price?+

Yes. Each project has its type, the system handles both.

How does billing-data preparation work?+

At month end, hice.ai takes validated timesheets, applies contractual rates and computes the T&M amounts to invoice, ready to export to your billing system.

Can I see margin in real-time?+

Yes. Consultant cost (internal) vs client revenue per project, always updated.

What if a consultant exceeds budget?+

Automatic alert to PM and Manager before the overrun materializes in the invoice.

E-invoicing integration?+

Yes, standard connectors to major e-invoicing providers.

Different rates same role different clients?+

Yes. Per-client price lists, master agreements, volume discounts all supported.

Cross-border projects?+

Yes. Multi-currency, withholding management, EU/non-EU billing.